trigger warning: this piece contains imagery depicting a lyching of two Black individuals.

so i’m back in my anime bag. I just started watching an anime entitled “86 -Eighty-Six-,” or “86.” 

i’m seven episodes in (at the time of typing this).

for quick context: the series follows Major Vladilena Milizé. she’s a member of a republic army that consists of a single race. skin of ivory, tresses so silver they take on a blueish hue —maybe like a jewel— and eyes some call celena. her journey is basically realizing the humanity of the Eighty-Six (86), a diverse group of front-line soldiers who fight in military drones in a futuristic, yet dystopian war zone.

if i say more, i’ll spoil things. 

anywhos. as i’m seven episodes in, i’m fathoming some parallels to real shit currently happening in the world.

so far, i’m gathering some similarities when it comes to concepts such as superiority, race, and war. i honestly see more of the first two though.

and it’s because i can relate as a Black, queer woman.

the eighty-six and the alba.

my formulating thoughts on the themes of  superiority are that it’s clear the characters are divided by race and physical traits. one race is better than all the others, and most of the present characters know this (or they have implicit biases).

the squadron isn’t even seen as humans by the alba race. their deaths aren’t even recognized.

real-world racism paralells.

america has a long history with this. i mean…look at slavery. look at the reconstruction era. look at the jim crow era. look at the civil rights era. look at the modern era. 

Black people, specifically, are the Eighty-Six.

so far, there’s these overt nods to white supremacist culture, white nationalism, and elitism. with bigotry and racism clearly at the forefront.

2026 is definitely seeing some similarities.

like with the ICE’s mass deportations, regardless of status (it seems). stuff like that makes me think of when a coworker of mine briefly shared a moment of concern with me.

she’s hispanic and i believe her family is venezuelan. she expressed how she was just really worried about what could happen to any of her relatives. at the time, i didn’t realize that that moment would show back up via an anime watchlist item (lol).

continuing on…obviously, there’s various attacks on communities of color. Black people are always the ultimate target fr. and Black women are definitely bearing the brunt.

so this idea of non-white people being worth less than or not deserving of equal, fair rights and respect has ran rampant irl and in the republic of san magnolia.

Milizé and when privilege starts to see itself.

but, that damn Major Milizé…

right now, i think her character is painting a picture of what it looks like when people take the time to sort out your biases. what it looks like when they realize a genuine need to self-reflect. 

what it looks like to understand their privilege and make an effort to educate themselves on the communities they’ve oppressed.

(and im sure we know who “they” are…)

but yeah, this was meant to be quick lol.

86 is pretty alright so far and it just reminds me of the times we’re in now.

-signed, G.